Li said he has recovered from chest pains, but his 12-year-old daughter still has a sore throat and trouble breathing. The family has received some money for its dead pigs and chickens.
Human toll
Liao said her father, Wang Ziqi, 61, tried to rescue her son, Wang Weiwei, but the two were found dead on a stone path. Her mother still suffers from breathing problems.
Liao's husband, who was working in another eastern factory at the time, has suffered a nervous breakdown, becoming "like some sort of crazy man," Liao said.
Families have received about 140,000 yuan (US$17,000) for each death -- a huge sum in a community where a two-story cement house costs about 80,000 yuan (about US$10,000). Furniture, appliances, clothing, bedding and other goods have also been donated.
At least 57 million yuan (US$7 million) has been set aside for compensation, according to local bank officials.
In Xiaoyang, police keep a close watch on all who come and go, vigilant for unrest. Officers detained a foreign journalist Saturday and ordered him to leave.
Workers in hard hats and bright orange jumpsuits were hauling equipment over the well site, preparing to drill horizontally through the hillside below.
Some villagers were at work repairing homes damaged by flames that charred the slope behind the village, while others, like Liao, loiter beside the well, sharing stories of loss and grief.
"We're terrified to have this well here," said Liao, gazing over the scene. "Who can say it won't happen again?"
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